Sri Lanka is expected to grow at 4.8% in 2018, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) said yesterday, but will lag behind developing Asia Pacific economies that are projected to grow at 5.5% in both 2018 and 2019.

The Government assured it would resolve the payment concerns of tea exports that are dampened by the US sanctions on Iran, as the Central Bank has now begun to negotiate with a couple of international banks to get assistance on payment term mechanism, a top Minister confirmed.

Foreign ministers from Iran and the four world powers that still want to be a part of the nuclear agreement they signed in 2015 are set to hold talks Friday on how to maintain the deal following the withdrawal of the United States.